European Union (2004) | Monaco (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | - | none; there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are four quarters (quartiers, singular - quartier); Fontvieille, La Condamine, Monaco-Ville, Monte-Carlo |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.3%
15-64 years: 67.2% 65 years and over: 16.6% (July 2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.5% (male 2,551; female 2,445)
15-64 years: 62.1% (male 9,814; female 10,130) 65 years and over: 22.4% (male 2,937; female 4,253) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, oilseeds, sugar beets, wine, grapes, dairy products, cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry, fish | none |
Airports | total: 3,130
with paved runways: 1,834 with unpaved runways: 1,296 (2003) |
none; linked to airport in Nice, France, by helicopter service (2002) |
Area | total: 3,976,372 sq km | total: 1.95 sq km
land: 1.95 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | less than one-half the size of the US | about three times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | Following the two devastating World Wars of the first half of the 20th century, a number of European leaders in the late 1940s became convinced that the only way to establish a lasting peace was to unite the two chief belligerent nations - France and Germany - both economically and politically. In 1950, the French Foreign Minister Robert SCHUMAN proposed an eventual union of all of Europe, the first step of which would be the integration of the coal and steel industries of Western Europe. The following year the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up when six members, Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, signed the Treaty of Paris.
The ECSC was so successful that within a few years the decision was made to integrate other parts of the countries' economies. In 1957, the Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM), and the six member states undertook to eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common market. In 1967, the institutions of all three communities were formally merged into the European Community (EC), creating a single Commission, a single Council of Ministers, and the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially selected by national parliaments, but in 1979 the first direct elections were undertaken and they have been held every five years since. In 1973, the first enlargement of the EC took place with the addition of Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy, in judicial and internal affairs, and in the creation of an economic and monetary union - including a common currency. This further integration created the European Union (EU). In 1995, Austria, Finland, and Sweden joined to the EU, raising the membership total to 15. A new currency, the euro, was launched in world money markets on 1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all of the EU states except Great Britain, Sweden, and Denmark. In 2002, citizens of the 12 euro-area countries began using euro banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 - Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia - bringing the current membership to 25. In order to ensure that the EU can continue to function efficiently with an expanded membership, the 2003 Treaty of Nice set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An EU Constitutional Treaty, signed in Rome on 29 October 2004, gives member states two years to ratify the document before it is scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006. Despite the expansion of membership and functions, "Eurosceptics" in various countries have raised questions about the erosion of national cultures and the imposition of a flood of regulations from the EU capital in Brussels. Failure by member states to ratify the constitution or the inability of newcomer countries to meet euro currency standards might force a loosening of some EU agreements and perhaps lead to several levels of EU participation. These "tiers" might eventually range from an "inner" core of politically integrated countries to a looser "outer" economic association of members. |
Economic development was spurred in the late 19th century with a railroad linkup to France and the opening of a casino. Since then, the principality's mild climate, splendid scenery, and gambling facilities have made Monaco world famous as a tourist and recreation center. |
Birth rate | 10.2 births/1,000 population (July 2004 est.) | 9.46 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $518 million
expenditures: $531 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1995) |
Capital | Brussels, Belgium | Monaco |
Climate | cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate; mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south | Mediterranean with mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers |
Coastline | 65,413.9 km | 4.1 km |
Constitution | based on a series of treaties: the Treaty of Paris, which set up the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1951; the Treaties of Rome, which set up the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) in 1957; the Single European Act in 1986; the Treaty on European Union (Maastrict) in 1992; the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1997; and the Treaty of Nice in 2001; note - a new draft Constitutional Treaty, signed on 29 October 2004 in Rome, gives member states two years for ratification either by parliamentary vote or national referendum before it is scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006 | 17 December 1962 |
Country name | - | conventional long form: Principality of Monaco
conventional short form: Monaco local long form: Principaute de Monaco local short form: Monaco |
Currency | euro; pound (Cyprus), koruna (Czech Republic), krone (Denmark), kroon (Estonia), forint (Hungary), lat (Latvia), litas (Lithuania), lira (Malta), zloty (Poland), koruna (Slovakia), tolar (Slovenia), krona (Sweden), pound (UK) | euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 10 deaths/1,000 population (July 2004 est.) | 12.82 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $NA |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rockwell SCHNABEL
embassy: 13 Zinnerstraat (Rue Zinner), B-1000 Brussels mailing address: same as above telephone: [32] (2) 508-2222 FAX: [32] (2) 512-5720 |
the US does not have an embassy in Monaco; the US Consul General in Marseille (France) is accredited to Monaco |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John BRUTON
chancery: 2300 M Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 862-9500 FAX: [1] (202) 429-1766 |
Monaco does not have an embassy in the US
consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | - | none |
Economic aid - donor | $NA | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
Economy - overview | Domestically, the European Union attempts to lower trade barriers, adopt a common currency, and move toward convergence of living standards. Internationally, the EU aims to bolster Europe's trade position and its political and economic power. Because of the great differences in per capita income (from $10,000 to $28,000) and historic national animosities, the European Community faces difficulties in devising and enforcing common policies. For example, both Germany and France since 2003 have flouted the member states' treaty obligation to prevent their national budgets from running more than a 3% deficit. In 2004, the EU admitted 10 central and eastern European countries that are, in general, less advanced technologically and economically than the existing 15. The Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), an associated organization, introduced the euro as the common currency on 1 January 1999. The UK, Sweden, and Denmark do not now participate; the 10 new countries may choose to join the EMU when they meet its fiscal and monetary criteria and the member states so agree. | Monaco, situated on the French Mediterranean coast, is a popular resort, attracting tourists to its casino and pleasant climate. In 2001, a major new construction project will extend the pier used by cruise ships in the main harbor. The principality has successfully sought to diversify into services and small, high-value-added, nonpolluting industries. The state has no income tax and low business taxes and thrives as a tax haven both for individuals who have established residence and for foreign companies that have set up businesses and offices. The state retains monopolies in a number of sectors, including tobacco, the telephone network, and the postal service. Living standards are high, roughly comparable to those in prosperous French metropolitan areas. Monaco does not publish national income figures; the estimates below are extremely rough. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.635 trillion kWh (2001) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 234.8 billion kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - imports | 245.7 billion kWh (2001) | NA kWh
note: electricity supplied by France |
Electricity - production | 2.822 trillion kWh (2001) | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lammefjord, Denmark -7 m; Zuidplaspolder, Netherlands -7 m
highest point: Mount Blanc, France/Italy 4,807 m |
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mont Agel 140 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Environment - international agreements | Hazardous Wastes, Biodiversity, Air Pollution, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Tropical Timber 82, Tropical Timber 94, Ozone Layer Protection, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Law of the Sea, Desertification, Climate Change; has signed, but not yet ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | - | French 47%, Monegasque 16%, Italian 16%, other 21% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) | euros per US dollar - 1.06 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of union: President of the European Commission Jose DURAO BARROSO (since 22 November 2004)
cabinet: European Commission (composed of 25 members, one from each member country; each commissioner responsible for one or more policy areas) elections: the president of the European Commission is designated by member governments; the president-designate then chooses the other Commission members; the European Parliament confirms the entire Commission for a five-year term; election last held 18 November 2004 (next to be held 2009) election results: European Parliament approved the European Commission by an approval vote of 449-149 with 82 abstentions note: the European Council brings together heads of state and government and the president of the European Commission and meets at least twice a year; its aim is to provide the impetus for the major political issues relating to European integration and to issue general policy guidelines |
chief of state: Prince RAINIER III (since 9 May 1949); Heir Apparent Prince ALBERT Alexandre Louis Pierre, son of the monarch (born 14 March 1958)
head of government: Minister of State Patrick LECLERCQ (since 5 January 2000) cabinet: Council of Government is under the authority of the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; minister of state appointed by the monarch from a list of three French national candidates presented by the French Government |
Exports | 6.429 million bbl/day (2001) | $NA; full customs integration with France, which collects and rebates Monegasque trade duties; also participates in EU market system through customs union with France |
Exports - commodities | machinery, motor vehicles, aircraft, plastics, pharmaceuticals and other chemicals, fuels, iron and steel, nonferrous metals, wood pulp and paper products, textiles, meat, dairy products, fish, alcoholic beverages. | - |
Exports - partners | NA | - |
Fiscal year | NA | calendar year |
Flag description | on a blue field, 12 five-pointed gold stars arranged in a circle, representing the union of the peoples of Europe; the number of stars is fixed | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; similar to the flag of Indonesia which is longer and the flag of Poland which is white (top) and red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $11.05 trillion (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $870 million (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.3%
industry: 28.3% services: 69.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $25,700 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $27,000 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | - | 43 44 N, 7 24 E |
Geography - note | - | second-smallest independent state in the world (after Holy See); almost entirely urban |
Heliports | 94 (2003) | 1 (shuttle service between the international airport at Nice, France, and Monaco's heliport at Fontvieille) (2002) |
Highways | total: 4,634,810 km (including 56,704 km of expressways)
paved: 4,161,318 km unpaved: 473,492 km (1999-2000) |
total: 50 km
paved: 50 km unpaved: 0 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 25.2% (1995 est.) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 16.97 million bbl/day (2001) | $NA; full customs integration with France, which collects and rebates Monegasque trade duties; also participates in EU market system through customs union with France |
Imports - commodities | machinery, vehicles, aircraft, plastics, crude oil, chemicals, textiles, metals, foodstuffs, clothing | - |
Imports - partners | NA | - |
Independence | 7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the EU); 1 November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force) | 1419 (beginning of the rule by the House of Grimaldi) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.8% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | among the world's largest and most technologically advanced industries, including iron and steel, aluminum, petroleum, coal, cement, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, aircraft, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, electrical power equipment, machine tools, electronics, telecommunications equipment, fishing, food processing, furniture, paper, textiles and clothing, tourism | tourism, construction, small-scale industrial and consumer products |
Infant mortality rate | total: 5.3 deaths/1,000 live births (July 2004 est.) | total: 5.63 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2004 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | European Union: ASEAN (dialogue member), ARF (dialogue member), EBRD, IDA, OAS (observer), OECD, WTO
European Commission: Australian Group, CBSS, CERN, FAO, G-10, NSG (observer), UN (observer) European Central Bank: BIS European Investment Bank: WADB (nonregional member) |
ACCT, ECE, FAO, IAEA, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNITAR, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 115,807 sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | European Court of Justice (ensures that the treaties are interpreted and applied correctly) - 25 Justices (one from each member state) appointed for a six-year term; note - for the sake of efficiency, the court can sit with 11 justices known as the "Grand Chamber"; Court of First Instance - 25 justices appointed for a six-year term | Supreme Court or Tribunal Supreme (judges appointed by the monarch on the basis of nominations by the National Council) |
Labor force | 211.1 million | 30,540 (January 1994) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4.3%, industry 29%, services 66.8% (2000) | - |
Land boundaries | total: 11,214.8 km
border countries: Albania 282 km, Andorra 120.3 km, Belarus 1,050 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Croatia 999 km, Holy See 3.2 km, Liechtenstein 34.9 km, Macedonia 246 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Norway 2,348 km, Romania 443 km, Russia 2,257 km, San Marino 39 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km, Switzerland 1,811 km, Turkey 206 km, Ukraine 726 km note: data for European Continent only |
total: 4.4 km
border countries: France 4.4 km |
Land use | arable land: NA
permanent crops: NA |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (urban area) (1998 est.) |
Languages | Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish; note - only official languages are listed | French (official), English, Italian, Monegasque |
Legal system | - | based on French law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | Council of the European Union (25 member-state ministers having 321 votes; the number of votes is roughly proportional to member-states' population); note - the Council is the main decision-making body of the EU; European Parliament (732 seats; seats allocated among member states by proportion to population); members elected by direct universal suffrage for a five-year term
elections: last held 10-13 June 2004 (next to be held June 2009) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - EPP-ED 268, PES 202, ALDE 88, Greens/EFA 42, EUL/NGL 41, IND/DEM 36, UEN 27, independents 28 |
unicameral National Council or Conseil National (24 seats; 16 members elected by list majority system, 8 by proportional representation; to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 February 2003 (next to be held NA February 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UNAM 21, UND 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.1 years
male: 74.9 years female: 81.4 years (July 2004 est.) |
total population: 79.27 years
male: 75.37 years female: 83.37 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: NA
total population: 99% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Europe between Eastern Europe and the North Atlantic Ocean | Western Europe, bordering the Mediterranean Sea on the southern coast of France, near the border with Italy |
Map references | Europe | Europe |
Maritime claims | NA | territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | In October 2004, the European Union heads of government signed a "constitutional treaty" that offers possibilities - with some limits - for increased defense and security cooperation. If ratified, in a process that may take some two years, this treaty will in effect make operational the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) approved in the 2000 Nice Treaty. Despite limits of cooperation for some EU members, development of a European military planning unit is likely to continue. So is creation of a rapid-reaction military force and a humanitarian aid system, which the planning unit will support. France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy continue to press for wider coordination. The five-nation Eurocorps - created in 1992 by France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, and Luxembourg - has already deployed troops and police on peacekeeping missions to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo and assumed command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan in August 2004. Eurocorps directly commands the 5,000-man Franco-German Brigade and the Multinational Command Support Brigade and will command EUFOR, which will take over from SFOR in Bosnia in December 2004. Other troop contributions are under national command - committments to provide 67,100 troops were made at the Helsinki EU session in 2000. Some 56,000 EU troops were actually deployed in 2003. In August 2004, the new European Defense Agency, tasked with promoting cooperative European defense capabilities, began operations. As of November 2004, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France had proposed creation of three 1,500-man rapid-reaction "battle groups." | defense is the responsibility of France |
National holiday | Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - a Union-wide holiday, the day that Robert Schuman proposed the creation of an organized Europe | National Day (Prince of Monaco Holiday), 19 November |
Nationality | - | noun: Monegasque(s) or Monacan(s)
adjective: Monegasque or Monacan |
Natural hazards | flooding along coasts; avalanches in mountainous area; earthquakes in the south; volcanic eruptions in Italy; periodic droughts in Spain; ice floes in the Baltic | NA |
Natural resources | iron ore, arable land, natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, lead, zinc, hydropower, uranium, potash, fish | none |
Net migration rate | 1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (July 2004 est.) | 7.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe or ALDE [Graham R. WATSON]; Independence/Democracy Group or IND/DEM [Jens-Peter BONDE and Nigel FARAGE]; Group of Greens/European Free Alliance or Greens/EFA [Monica FRASSONI and Daniel Marc COHN-BENDIT]; Socialist Group in the European Parliament or PES [Martin SCHULZ]; Confederal Group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left or EUL/NGL [Francis WURTZ]; European People's Party-European Democrats or EPP-ED [Hans-Gert POETTERING]; Union for Europe of the Nations Group or UEN [Brian CROWLEY and Cristiana MUSCARDINI] | National and Democratic Union or UND [Jean-Louis CAMPORA]; Union for Monaco or UPM (including National Union for the Future of Monaco or UNAM [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | 456,285,839 (July 2004 est.) | 32,130 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.17% (July 2004 est.) | 0.44% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Antwerp (Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Bremen (Germany), Copenhagen (Denmark), Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas (Canary Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal), London (UK), Marseille (France), Naples (Italy), Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Riga (Latvia), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Stockholm (Sweden), Talinn (Estonia) | Monaco |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 866, FM 13,396, shortwave 73 (1998); note - sum of individual country radio broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide station (Euroradio) | AM 1, FM NA, shortwave 8 (1998) |
Railways | total: 222,293 km
broad gauge: 28,438 km standard gauge: 186,405 km narrow gauge: 7,427 km other: 23 km (2003) |
total: 1.7 km
standard gauge: 1.7 km 1.435-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish | Roman Catholic 90% |
Sex ratio | at birth: NA
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and older: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (July 2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | note - see individual country entries of member states | general assessment: modern automatic telephone system
domestic: NA international: no satellite earth stations; connected by cable into the French communications system |
Telephones - main lines in use | 238,763,162 (2002) | 31,027 (1995) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 314,644,700 (2002) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 2,791 (1995); note - does not include repeaters; sum of indiviual country television broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide station (Eurovision) | 5 (1998) |
Terrain | fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the central and southern areas | hilly, rugged, rocky |
Total fertility rate | 1.48 children born/woman (July 2004 est.) | 1.76 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.1% (2004 est.) | 3.1% (1998) |
Waterways | 53,512 km | none |